"It's the ability to work with really all different areas of the campus at the same time," Scherr said of the role of the provost. "It's a very inclusive job."
Scherr, who was to remain as provost until June 2011 at the latest, is stepping down to pursue his academic work and write a book, College President Jim Yong Kim said in a campus-wide announcement earlier this month.
Dean of Faculty Carol Folt will serve as interim provost until a permanent replacement is found.
INITIATIVE OVERSIGHT
Scherr, the Mandel Family Professor of Russian, served as associate provost before being named provost in 2001. Scherr initially worked to streamline the oversight of external funding, according to vice provost for research Martin Wybourne.
This task had previously been shared by the associate provost for research and the associate provost for professional schools. Scherr created the position of a vice provost for research to coordinate the College's research infrastructure.
"He recognized the need early on to establish my position," Wybourne, who assumed the post in 2004, said in an interview with The Dartmouth.
In more recent years, Scherr's tenure has been marked by two rounds of budget cuts at the College.
Biology professor Roger Sloboda said he believed Scherr was effective in managing those cuts. During the first set of budget cuts, which Sloboda was involved in as associate provost, Scherr went through months of meetings before making a final decision, Sloboda said.
"He does a thorough job of looking at all the possibilities before making those decisions," he said.
Tucker Foundation Dean Richard Crocker similarly pointed to Scherr's work in handling the cuts, noting that Scherr was able to avoid controversy even as the College was faced with tough choices.
"When making major decisions, he's been very deliberative," Crocker said.
Scherr, who chaired the Student Budget Advisory Committee during the College's most recent round of cuts, was equally careful in listening to students' concerns, according to former student body president Molly Bode '09.
"I was extremely pleased with the fact that Provost Scherr was so proactive and willing to take students' comments," Bode said.
Scherr also supported several projects in the College's arts departments during his tenure as provost, according to theater department chair Timothy Hackett.
"To be honest, [Scherr's] support and attention to the arts has been extraordinary," Hackett said.
Scherr provided strong backing for the theater department's "Voices" program, Hackett said, which was designed to provide better representation for minority groups in the arts at Dartmouth.
"[Scherr] sort of became our champion to the president, and he and the president funded this program out of their discretionary funds for five years," Hackett said. "They put their money where their mouths were."
Scherr also promoted the Montgomery Fellows Program, the growth of the College's gospel choir and the creation of the Dartmouth Idol competition, Jeff James, director of the Hopkins Center for the Arts, said.
Scherr spearheaded the transition between former College President James Wright and current President Jim Yong Kim, who took office in July.
Scherr has said he stayed on as provost longer than he originally planned to provide "institutional memory for the central administration."
FOSTERING GROWTH
Scherr's policies often had far-reaching effects at the College, creating a positive environment for growth, according to administrators and faculty members interviewed by The Dartmouth.
"[Scherr] put in place all the mechanisms to allow faculty and students to be more competitive and more successful," Wybourne said.
Scherr also deserves recognition for the decision to construct the Visual Art Center, Hackett said.
"I have to believe that he was instrumental in not only getting [the donation to fund the project], but in the decision to move forward," Hackett said,
In addition, Scherr helped to support the expansion of the College's libraries, according to Jeffrey Horrell, dean of libraries and librarian of the College.
"He has been extremely supportive of collection building at the libraries," he said, adding later, "He's a serious scholar, and has used libraries and done research his entire career, so he knows libraries well."
A "RECEPTIVE" ADMINISTRATOR
Scherr distinguished himself as a responsive and judicious administrator, according to faculty and administrators interviewed by The Dartmouth.
"[He] gives and has given a lot of autonomy in running the programs or organizations that [administrators] are hired to run," Horrell said. "In a very complicated role that he plays, he's been extremely fair."
Thayer School of Engineering Dean Joseph Helble agreed, describing Scherr as "more of an encourager than a pusher."
Multiple faculty members and administrators said that Scherr was one of the most responsive administrators they worked with.
Scherr often worked 12-hour days, Sloboda said, and made himself available to the faculty and other administrators. It often took three months to schedule an appointment with former Provost John Strohbehn, Sloboda said, calling the level of access Scherr offered "unprecedented."
On a typical day, Scherr responded to e-mails by 6 a.m., arrived in his office by 7 a.m., and did not leave until 7 p.m., Sloboda said.
"He lived this job 24/7," Horrell said.
MOVING FORWARD
Although Folt has not yet defined her role as provost, the office must continue to evolve, Wybourne said.
At many of Dartmouth's peer institutions, the Provost's Office is central to core operations, Wybourne said, adding that he would like to see Dartmouth's provost position move in a similar direction.
"I think there are areas the Provost Office can grow, but it has to be done in a thoughtful way," he said. "I think that [Folt] will adopt a very well functioning office, and she will have to move it in the direction she sees fit."
While some changes may be beneficial, the role of the provost should not change too suddenly, Horrell said.
"It's important that there's continuity, and [Folt's appointment] is a good signal," he said.
Scherr will return full-time to his academic work as a professor in the Russian department. In the interview with The Dartmouth, he said that he chose to step down in part due to a feeling of detachment from his scholarly work.
"The longer you stay in positions like [the provost role], the harder it is to feel that you really are keeping up," he said.
The realities of age also played a part, he said, noting that several of his close friends have passed away recently.
"You start feeling your age, you start wondering how many years you have left," Scherr, who is 64 years old, said.
